大象传媒

The Airborne Regiment was at Heckington before the Arnhem Landings, so we were familiar with the gliders which were brought into the village. There were several in the grounds of Outram鈥檚 house, now the venue of Heckington Show. At this time, I was at Heckington School and we were taken for gasmask training in one of the outbuildings close to the gliders. We had to put on our gasmasks and walk into this building and practise breathing in a gas filled area. I never did find out what was in that building, but we all felt extremely brave after the exercise. It was a great shock whenever the soldiers moved out as there was shouting of orders and continual movement of heavy vehicles and guns, followed by complete silence. Until the next lot arrived!

Apart from the soldiers, there were several evacuees living in the village. Quite a few arrived from Hull at the height of the bombing and we could not believe that they had lived in the shelters for weeks. Many were terrified of the country animals etc. and were suffering form malnutrition as well as their traumatic experiences. It was a difficult job for the foster parents as they were like little wild animals, and many could not settle, so they quickly returned to their families. Some stayed for quite a long time and became typical country children.

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